16 Time bombs set to go off in your child unless you prevent them now

Catching Humpty Dumpty – A Good Foundation
Sixteen time-bombs that may be set to go off in your child unless you do something to prevent them now.

                In a solid rocket motor, the difference between a launch and a detonation can be one little crack. A rocket motor is not like a car motor. It doesn’t have a bunch of moving metal parts. In fact, it’s more like a big rubber eraser with a bunch of small particles in it. When cast and cured correctly, it burns from one end to the other (after ignition), which causes a controlled thrust powerful enough to lift huge shuttles and satellites into space. It’s also the same stuff that propels tactical missiles to their destinations.

                One little crack in the solid, rubbery fuel will cause an over-pressure so quickly that the burn becomes an instantaneous explosion- a detonation. Rocket scientists and engineers are very careful to make sure that a solid rocket motor (SRM) has no gaps, de-bonds, or cracks anywhere inside. They also protect an SRM during transport from manufacture in say, Utah, to NASA in Florida, to make sure that nothing impacts the SRM, and that it doesn’t get dropped or bumped at any time in the loading and unloading. One little crack in the solid fuel can mean the difference between celebrating an astronaut in space and attending his/her funeral.

                So what does that have to do with raising children? One little crack in the foundation of a child’s beginnings can change his/her future forever. Most of these are preventable or treatable if caught early, and children are resilient, thank goodness. It’s also similar to getting off-track like this ( < ). See how at the beginning of the crack the lines are close together near the point? But the further it grows, the wider the gap between the lines, or the more off-track we are. What might seem like a small thing in the beginning may have lasting effects later.

                What do dyslexia, speech problems, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism, a weak immune system, malnutrition, children of rage, low self-esteem, insecurity, childhood depression, low self-confidence, lack of imagination, lower IQ, slower learning capacity, poor decision-making skills, lack of social skills, and the downward educational trend have in common? Most may be preventable or curable when caught early. You, mom and dad, are the key.

                Let’s discuss how each of the building blocks (substance-free pregnancy and home, breast-feeding and nutrition, affection and family environment, brain stimulation, early phonics, early math, service projects) can prevent or treat the cracks in your child’s life: What would you be willing to do to prevent your child from having dyslexia? What would you be willing to do to help her be gifted? Academically talented?

                Even though there may be a genetic (or biological) link to some learning disabilities, certain environmental factors can trigger problems or worsen them. Others can prevent or improve them. And even though there may be a genetic link to intelligence, certain environmental factors can stunt it, while others can enhance it. There are many things a parent can do to help give her child the best possible cognitive abilities.

                Ideally, preventing learning disabilities in your child begins before her conception. We all know the drill of being drug and alcohol free, not smoking, eating nutritionally, taking prenatal vitamins and iron, etc., but they work. They make sure that your baby gets enough oxygen and nutrition without any detrimental substances to stunt development. We also know that making sure the baby has enough oxygen during delivery is essential to mental health. We'll discuss them more in-depth next week.

http://thegodfreymethod.com/blog/catching-humpty-dumpty-good-foundation 

Early reading the right way - intro

It’s not Rocket Surgery!
How to put your children on the launch pad of life and watch them soar.
Or, Why should you teach your child to read before kindergarten

               

All the time I hear the catch phrase, “It’s not rocket science,” when something could be harder. But guess what us rocket scientists usually say – “It’s not brain surgery.” The irony is that once I heard neuro-brain surgeon, Dr. Nathan Avery, say, “It’s not rocket science,” but it was! He had come to ATK Thiokol in northern Utah to ask us for help with a serious accident case he was working on. Around May of 2001, Amber McCallister’s car was broad-sided by another vehicle on Interstate-15 near Midvale, Utah.

 

Even though her 2-year-old son, Zachary, was in his car seat, he was severely injured. While the car seat restraints had held his body in place, his head kept moving forward, detaching his skull from his spine. Usually this kind of injury also severs the spinal cord and arteries, causing instant death, but miraculously not in Zachary. This was a few months before the infamous September 11^th incident in New York, and the following Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City 2002. I was expecting my 14^th (and last) child, too.

 

Dr. Avery, at Primary Children’s Medical Center, kept little Zachary immobile in a drug-induced coma while he searched for the tools required to save him. He needed a horse-shoe shaped device made of titanium-vanadium metal alloy, but only had ones large enough to fit adults and older children. He needed first to find some titanium-vanadium alloy in a hurry, then to find someone who could machine it to precisely the right specifications to fit the toddler’s skull and spine. He telephoned several companies all over the Rocky Mountains and United States, and hit pay dirt when he reached the Metallurgy group at ATK Thiokol’s aerospace division just west of Brigham City, Utah.

 

The manager over the metallurgy group of the science and engineering labs there had a research and development (R&D) machine shop located in the back of the lab building, with state-of-the-art CNC computerized milling machines. Even better, the specific titanium-vanadium alloy needed for the human body, because it’s flexible and doesn’t get rejected by the immune system, was the same metal used for solid rocket motor nozzles (nose cones). And the Metallurgy group happened to have some on hand.

 

Lab technician Dave Lefgren told me of our unique visitor. Although not a direct player in this drama, I was privileged to walk down the hall from my lab and observe the wonderful blend of rocket science and brain surgery. We met Dr. Avery (and his assistant), who showed us a strip of titanium-vanadium alloy and explained its perfect surgical qualities. Titanium has what is called good ‘memory,’ where it is almost elastic and returns to its original shape after bending. The surgeon had a great sense of humor, and we laughed that we thought each other’s jobs were harder, as in the swap of clichés.

 

Russell Evan Howe (Howie to all) oversaw the hands-on milling of the alloy into the precise horse-shoe shape that Dr. Avery specified. It took some careful computer programming and almost 24 hours to slowly, accurately, cut the metal with liquid jet sprays. Dr. Douglas Brockmeyer helped Dr. Avery perform the actual surgery on Zachary McCallister. The surgery was successful; the special device was the right size for the toddler, and reconnected his head to his spine.

 

The next year, at a special awards ceremony held on May 20, 2002, at the Marriott in Provo, 48 people responsible for saving the little boy were honored with an Emergency Services Award. An ATK Thiokol spokesman also presented Zachary with a plaque containing memorabilia from an actual space flight. He said helping the little boy, "lifted us higher than any space flight."

 

I absolutely love the commercial for Eggo syrup which featured an exec at the Eggo waffle company asking why nobody's ever thought of making Eggo syrup to go along with their waffles?!

 

                "It's not rocket surgery!" he says. That’s exactly what we did for Zachary McCallister – rocket surgery.

 

On the other side of the spectrum, my projects often consisted of a little “rocket surgery” where we often did a little cutting, or surgery, on rocket motors. We biopsied segments of solid rocket motor fuel from missiles and boosters to test them for chemical and mechanical changes due to aging of the materials. So, “It’s not rocket surgery” has become my catch-phrase for the standard of things that don’t require skilled people and complicated feats.

 

As a working mom of 14 kids, I’m proof that with the right method and tools, it’s not hard to teach your child to read before kindergarten. But it is very important. My Dad taught me to read when I was only 3 years old, and look where it took me. Aerospace! Anyone can do it and I can show you how. It’s not rocket surgery!

 

http://thegodfreymethod.com/blog/its-not-rocket-surgery-early-reading-right-way-intro

12 Reasons why your child needs early reading the right way

12 Reasons why your child needs early reading the right way

Why use The Godfrey Method to overcome the Top Ten Myths of Reading?

• You learn how to redefine your definition of the word ‘reading’. You learn that reading is not the same for all children.
• You discover how to move through the roadblocks and challenges your child faces on his road to learning how to read.
• You become aware of a new way of bonding with your child which is fun, productive, and most of all, the most valuable gift that you can share with her.
• And most importantly, a simple shift in your current thinking about learning to read can change his or her entire world.

Your value, your reward for following The Godfrey Method’s easy-to-understand path to the foundation of your child’s future learning, is:

• You experience the eye-opening tips, the innovative strategies, and the techniques that have brought so many children to the doorway of success.
• You experience a combination of compelling and insightful stories of children and parents moving through the challenges and roadblocks that once held them back on their road to learning.
• You experience the practical step-up formula that will help you discover your child’s own innate ability to become a participant in the world of reading.
• You experience a true sense of the word bonding as you both move through The Godfrey Method of reading, targeting your ability to overcome the once impossible task of helping your child read.

The pot of gold at the end of the rainbow is you and your child get to walk away with the tools and knowledge to step up to a brighter and more fulfilling world of learning.

Take-aways:

• Learn the links which create understanding between the eyes & mind.
• Use sound to speed the learning process.
• “Reading is hearing with your eyes.”
• Quick and inexpensive way to do it at home.

 

Do you know the answers to these myths? Do you know the truth?

                         Find the truth in "A Funny Boy Was Prince River"

http://thegodfreymethod.com/blog/12-reasons-why-your-child-needs-early-reading-right-way